1.2 Typographical and Syntax Conventions

This manual uses certain typographical conventions:

Text in this style is used for SQL
statements; database, table, and column names; program listings
and source code; and environment variables. Example: “To
reload the grant tables, use the
FLUSH
PRIVILEGES statement.”

Text in this style indicates input that
you type in examples.

Text in this style indicates the names of
executable programs and scripts, examples being
mysql (the MySQL command-line client program)
and mysqld (the MySQL server executable).

Text in this style is used for
variable input for which you should substitute a value of your
own choosing.

Text in this style is used for emphasis.

Text in this style is used in
table headings and to convey especially strong emphasis.

Text in this style is used to indicate a
program option that affects how the program is executed, or that
supplies information that is needed for the program to function
in a certain way. Example: “The
--host option (short form -h)
tells the mysql client program the hostname
or IP address of the MySQL server that it should connect
to”.

File names and directory names are written like this: “The
global my.cnf file is located in the
/etc directory.”

Character sequences are written like this: “To specify a
wildcard, use the ‘%’
character.”

When commands are shown that are meant to be executed from within a
particular program, the prompt shown preceding the command indicates
which command to use. For example, shell>
indicates a command that you execute from your login shell,
root-shell> is similar but should be executed
as root, and mysql>
indicates a statement that you execute from the
mysql client program:

In some areas different systems may be distinguished from each other
to show that commands should be executed in two different
environments. For example, while working with replication the
commands might be prefixed with master and
slave:

master> type a mysql command on the replication master here
slave> type a mysql command on the replication slave here

The “shell” is your command interpreter. On Unix, this
is typically a program such as sh,
csh, or bash. On Windows, the
equivalent program is command.com or
cmd.exe, typically run in a console window.

When you enter a command or statement shown in an example, do not
type the prompt shown in the example.

Database, table, and column names must often be substituted into
statements. To indicate that such substitution is necessary, this
manual uses db_name,
tbl_name, and
col_name. For example, you might see a
statement like this:

mysql> SELECT col_name FROM db_name.tbl_name;

This means that if you were to enter a similar statement, you would
supply your own database, table, and column names, perhaps like
this:

mysql> SELECT author_name FROM biblio_db.author_list;

SQL keywords are not case sensitive and may be written in any
lettercase. This manual uses uppercase.

In syntax descriptions, square brackets
(“[” and
“]”) indicate optional words or
clauses. For example, in the following statement, IF
EXISTS is optional:

DROP TABLE [IF EXISTS] tbl_name

When a syntax element consists of a number of alternatives, the
alternatives are separated by vertical bars
(“|”). When one member from a set of
choices may be chosen, the alternatives are
listed within square brackets (“[”
and “]”):

TRIM([[BOTH | LEADING | TRAILING] [remstr] FROM] str)

When one member from a set of choices must be
chosen, the alternatives are listed within braces
(“{” and
“}”):

{DESCRIBE | DESC} tbl_name [col_name | wild]

An ellipsis (...) indicates the omission of a
section of a statement, typically to provide a shorter version of
more complex syntax. For example,
SELECT ... INTO
OUTFILE is shorthand for the form of
SELECT statement that has an
INTO OUTFILE clause following other parts of the
statement.

An ellipsis can also indicate that the preceding syntax element of a
statement may be repeated. In the following example, multiple
reset_option values may be given, with
each of those after the first preceded by commas:

RESET reset_option [,reset_option] ...

Commands for setting shell variables are shown using Bourne shell
syntax. For example, the sequence to set the CC
environment variable and run the configure
command looks like this in Bourne shell syntax:

shell> CC=gcc ./configure

If you are using csh or tcsh,
you must issue commands somewhat differently: